OfficialLaxGirl: Be Confident

Confidence is a huge part of life, and it’s also a very important part of sports. Without confidence, it seems like you can’t really do much. Without confidence, those extra three seconds you take while hesitating a crease roll might equal a check from a defender and a turnover. The more I play lacrosse, the more I realize just how important it is to be confident in a few key things. You need to be confident in your stick skills, your experience, your teammates, and ultimately yourself. If you don’t believe you’ll actually catch that pass, then chances are you might not because you don’t believe.

I’m one of those people that is always nervous. I don’t really know why, but for some reason I bite my nails, and I check everything multiple times before games to make sure it’s all perfect and ready for the game. I’ve slowly begun to realize that if I feel like i’ve practiced my hardest, that i’ve put in the reps, then I really shouldn’t be nervous. I should look forward to the game or the tournament, and be ready to show what i’ve learned or almost perfected. We put in hours and hours on the field, and we deserve to be excited to hear that whistle and begin our play!

Something else that might hurt your confidence is comparing yourself to other players. And no, I don’t mean saying, “Wow, that college player is amazing. Her crease rolling makes me wanna practice mine even more.” I mean in terms of, “Wow, that person on my team is amazing. Why can’t I have her stick skills, why can’t I be as tall as her, why couldn’t I have started playing when I was five?” Sometimes when we compare ourselves to other people extensively, we kind of start to forget all the things we’re good at too. I’ve slowly learned that with sports, if you approach what you’re doing by remembering what you’re great at and acknowledging what you’d like to work on, things may work out because you don’t devalue yourself and you use what you’re good at to push you instead of what you’re not as good at to weigh you down.

I realized that my key to confidence was to have fun. To laugh. Instead of feeling scared, I try to make jokes and dance around in the locker room to loosen up. The less I focus on what i’m worried of messing up, the more I give myself freedom to enjoy the game and help out my team. I try to check and make sure I have all my equipment on or with me, I focus on what I can control. I can control having my jersey tucked in and my mouthguard in my pocket, and if that’s in order then the rest comes naturally because I can focus on the game.

Go out there and have fun. Remember that you fell in love with an amazing sport and you’ve worked hard to get to where you are. Remember the things that make people turn their heads, and hustle to get better at those you want to. Be the best player you can be, and have the most fun out there because when you let loose and let yourself play, you’ll most definitely shine and be confident. :)